Zingari-Richmond was good for about 40 minutes.
Taieri played right to the end.
And that was the difference between the top and bottom-placed teams.
The Eels ran in six second-half tries to demolish the Colours 55-14 at Peter Johnstone Park on Saturday.
The win confirmed Taieri in pole position for the playoffs. It will play the bottom-placed qualifier which happens to be Southern.
Zingari-Richmond picked up just two bonus point during the round robin and finished last.
But that elusive opening win briefly looked possible for the men from Montecillo.
The Colours took the game to their higher-ranked opponent. Willie Time was unstoppable in the midfield and barged through several tacklers to score.
Earlier, he set up a try for winger Ratu Karamaena with another bullocking run.
But some basic errors allowed Taieri to respond. And while they were lacklustre in the opening spell, winger Hunter Dickson got across for a brace of tries.
The Eels took a 17-14 lead into the break. They emerged with more purpose and scored some good tries.
But Zingari-Richmond provided a helping hand with a series of fumbles and poor defence. And Taieri was organised enough to swoop.
Flanker Nick Henderson and lock Brodie Hume had busy games for the Eels, while loose forward Aron Einarsson put in an honest shift for the visiting team. Time was a beast until he got injured and eventually left the field with 20 minutes remaining.
Dunedin 24 Green Island 14
Dunedin started the game well at Miller Park and dominated territory and possession. It had an early reward when, after a couple of pick-and-goes from the pack, flanker Angus Duckett crashed over.
The away side then inexplicably turned over the ball from the kick-off and Green Island centre Nelson Yorston went over out wide after two quick rucks to draw level.
Green Island and its No8, Sean Jansen, were causing Dunedin all sorts of trouble at the breakdown and turned over the ball seven times in the spell. The Dunedin backline was largely inaccurate especially off its numerous line breaks.
The visiting team finally held on to the ball and the game’s most influential player, lock Mark Grieve Dunn, went over after 25 minutes to give Dunedin a five-point lead which it took into the break.
The Dunedin errors continued into the second spell as Green Island continued applying extreme pressure at the breakdown. Stand-in first five-eighth Keenan Christian Goss thrust his hand through a ruck to score and give Dunedin a 10-point lead with 17 to go.
But as in the first half it turned over the ball from the kick off and prop Shane Fikken eventually found his way to the line to cut the lead to three and the home team looked the goods.
But it made crucial handling errors in the next 10 minutes when points looked to be there for the taking.
Winger Oscar Schmidt-Uili made it pay when he collected a kick 70m out and glided through the defence. With a couple of dummies, he ran away to score under the bar and win the game.
For Dunedin, Dunn was inspirational and young midfielder Ben Shepherd was a tower of strength. Jansen was into everything and a constant menace at the breakdown and was the spark for a spirited home team performance.
Harbour 23 Alhambra-Union 20
Not again.
Alhambra-Union duffed another late kick at goal which could have made all the difference.
Alhambra-Union had fought back from 20-10 down to draw level 20-20 with Harbour at the North Ground.
The home team needed the win to have a shot at the playoffs but missed a handy penalty with about five minutes remaining.
Instead, it was Hawks pivot Toka Sopoaga who sealed the win with a penalty shortly after.
The 23-20 loss means Alhambra-Union missed out of a playoff spot and will have to play for the minor placings.
Last week, the side missed a handy conversion to lose 33-32 to Kaikorai. It has been one of those seasons for the Broncos.
Harbour, however, secured fourth spot and will play Kaikorai in the top-six playoffs.
Sopoaga helped make the difference. He converted both tries and nailed three penalties and arguably outplayed Highlanders utility Vilimoni Koroi.
Alhambra-Union showed good enterprise out wide and outscored Harbour three tries to two.
Right winger Isaac Milne was the best of the backs for the Broncos. But Harbour had the better of the set pieces, particularly the scrum as its tight five dominated.
The turning point came at the beginning of the second half. Alhambra-Union was behind 13-10 but found itself down 20-10 when it failed to take the kick-off.
Harbour got crucial field position and battered away. Eventually halfback Jinho Mun scored from the back of the scrum.
Kaikorai 21 Southern 18
A strong performance from its forwards helped Kaikorai overcome a spirited Southern side at Bathgate Park to retain the prized Frank Cadman trophy.
Blindside flanker Josh Keenan and lock Zach McKenzie featured in a dominant Kaikorai pack from the outset.
Keenan got Kaikorai’s scoring under way when he took a clean take from the lineout and, from the resulting maul, was on hand to dive over for the try. The home team locked the scores up five minutes later through No8 Mika Mafi.
The remainder of the first half gave witness to a highly competitive affair and only a late penalty goal to Southern first-five-eighth Mitch Taylor separated the sides.
Keenan was the victim of a high tackle after the break, and Southern was handed the first of two yellow cards. Kaikorai missed touch with the resulting penalty, the ball was punted back up field and Southern fullback Obey Samate gathered in a kind bounce for an unobstructed run to the line.
It was a different result when Southern was again reduced to 14 men, Keenan’s replacement, Jackson Dempster, closing the game back up with his try.
A penalty try late in the game handed Kaikorai back the lead, and it then shut Southern down, locking it deep within its own half until the final whistle.
Among others standing out for Kaikorai were Mitch Pryde and Johnny Abbleby while Southern was well served by Mafi, Tofatuimoana Solia and midfielder Paul Tupai.
- ODT rugby writers